Two roads to effectiveness: CEO feedback seeking,vision articulation,and firm performance

Humble leadership is attracting increased scholarly attention, but little is known about its effects when used in conjunction with less humble leadership behaviors that rely on a perception of the leader as confident and charismatic. This study contrasts the effects on top management team (TMT) potency and organizational performance of a more humble (feedback seeking) and a less humble (vision) CEO leader behavior. We hypothesize that CEO feedback seeking increases TMT potency and firm performance by communicating to TMT members that the organization values their input and encouraging their own feedback seeking, whereas CEO vision articulation influences these outcomes by fostering greater clarity about the firm's direction, and an enhanced ability to coordinate efforts within the TMT. CEOs who have not developed a vision can achieve a similar positive impact on TMT potency and firm performance by seeking feedback. In a sample of CEOs and TMT members from 65 firms, both CEO feedback seeking and vision articulation exhibit positive direct relationships with firm performance. However, only feedback seeking displays an indirect effect on performance via TMT potency. Finally, CEO feedback seeking has its strongest effects on firm performance and TMT potency for CEOs who are not seen as having a vision.     

组织安全文化评价的基础性问题及方法论

为促进组织安全文化评价研究与实践,针对目前组织安全文化评价研究所存在的根本缺陷,运用文献分析法,对组织安全文化评价的基础性问题及方法论开展系统研究。基于评价的定义,提出组织安全文化评价的定义,并分析其内涵。基于此,提炼与剖析组织安全文化评价的8个基本问题,即评价原则、评价基准、评价对象、评价目的、评价层面、评价范围、评价依据与限制因素,并建构和解析组织安全文化评价的一般程式。结果表明:组织安全文化评价需以明晰上述8个组织安全文化评价的基本问题为前提和基础,需以文献学方法、系统论方法、社会学与心理学方法、数学与统计学方法及具体评价方法5大类方法为指导。     

The relationship between employees' perceptions of safety and organizational culture

PROBLEM: With limited resources to help reduce occupational injuries, companies struggle with how to best focus these resources to achieve the greatest reduction in injuries for the optimal cost. Safety culture has been identified as a critical factor that sets the tone for importance of safety within an organization. METHOD: An employee safety perception survey was conducted, and injury data were collected over a 45-month period from a large ready-mix concrete producer located in the southwest region of the United States. RESULTS: The results of this preliminary study suggest that the reductions in injuries experienced at the company locations was strongly impacted by the positive employee perceptions on several key factors. Management's commitment to safety was the factor with the greatest positive perception by employees taking the survey. DISCUSSION: This study was set up as a pilot project and did not unitize an experimental design. That weakness reduces the strength of these findings but adds to the importance of expanding the pilot project with an appropriate experimental design. SUMMARY: Management leadership has been identified, along with several other factors, to influence employee perceptions of the safety management system. Those perceptions, in turn, appear to influence employee decisions that relate to at-risk behaviors and decisions on the job. IMPACT ON INDUSTRY: The results suggest that employee perceptions of the safety system are related to management's commitment to safety, which, in turn, appear to be related to injury rates. Management should focus on how to best leverage these key factors to more positively impact injury rates within their companies.     

Cross‐level effects of demography and diversity climate on organizational attachment and firm effectiveness

We studied the impact of demographic diversity on individual attachment and firm unit performance in a relatively diverse organization. We implemented cross‐level regression to study gender and race/ethnic categorical, relational, and organizational demography in a sample of 26 units part of a regional restaurant chain. At the individual level, we found that diversity climate (DC) moderates the impact of relational and categorical demography on affective organizational commitment, organizational identification, and intention to quit. At the organizational level, we found that DC moderates the impact of organizational diversity on firm productivity and return on profit. We discuss the importance of organizational DC as organizational context on individual attachment, and implications for firm effectiveness in diverse organizations. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Assessment of complex sociotechnical systems – Theoretical issues concerning the use of organizational culture and organizational core task concepts

This article studies organizational assessment in complex sociotechnical systems. There is a practical need to monitor, anticipate and manage the safety and effectiveness of these systems. A failure to do so has resulted in various organizational accidents. Many theories of accidents and safety in industrial organizations are either based on a static and rational model of an organization or they are non-contextual. They are thus reactive in their search for errors and analysis of previous accidents and incidents, or they are disconnected from the actual work in the organization by their focus on general safety attitudes and values. A more proactive and predictive approach is needed, that is based on an accurate view on an organization and the demands of the work in question. This article presents and elaborates four statements: (1) the current models of safety management are largely based on either a rational or a non-contextual image of an organization, (2) complex sociotechnical systems are socially constructed and dynamic cultures, (3) in order to be able to assess complex sociotechnical systems an understanding of the organizational core task is required, and (4) effectiveness and safety depend on the cultural conceptions of the organizational core task. Finally, we will discuss the implications of the proposed concepts for safety research and development work in complex sociotechnical systems.     

Supporting organizational learning by comparing activities and outcomes of the safety-management system

The approach to support organizational learning from pro-active monitoring (activities observations) and deficiencies revealed (outcomes observations) in process-safety incident investigations is proposed.The approach builds on five main steps: i.) Implementation of the incident-investigation procedure at the company level, ii.) Monitoring of the preventive safety activities using various tools, iii.) Identification of the safety outcomes including root-cause analysis, iv.) Comparison of activities observations with outcomes observations in order to reveal latent deficiencies as well as to proof relationships, v.) New universal indicator method is proposed to enhance organizational learning from both activities and outcomes observations.The approach is demonstrated on the implementation at the anonymous SME company. This involved carrying out activities observations in terms of the SMS internal audit and the ARAMIS and the violation-motivation safety-culture questionnaire surveys. The outcomes observations consisted of the three incidents investigations using ECFA+, 3CA and MORT methods. The approach and the case study enabled demonstration of the relationships between activities observations (preventive indicators) and outcomes observations (root causes/deficiencies indicators) and vice versa. We state that such a comparison adds to the justification of the preventive safety performance indicators. Finally, in order to ease the organizational learning from both activities and outcomes observations, universal management indicators attributes/categories are suggested to be followed and are briefly explained based on a modified REWI approach.     

Unraveling the organizational mechanism at the root of safety compliance in an Italian manufacturing firm

Safety performance is recognized as the more proximal and effective precursor of safety outcomes. In particular, safety compliance significantly reduces workplace accidents and injuries. However, it is not entirely clear what role organizational factors play in determining workers’ safety. The present study contributes to defining which organizational factors increase safety compliance by testing a mediational model in which supervisor support is related to safety climate, which in turn is related to organizational identification that finally is related to safety compliance. We tested our hypotheses in a sample of 186 production workers of an Italian manufacturing firm using a cross-sectional design. Findings confirm our hypotheses. Management should consider these organizational factors in order to implement primary prevention practices against work accidents.     

Antecedents and outcomes of employee perceptions of intra‐organizational mobility channels

Employees' beliefs about how promotions are awarded within their organizations can have important consequences. We conducted two studies that focus on perceptions of the criteria used to make promotion decisions. In Study 1, we identified two types of perceived promotion criteria, performance‐based and nonperformance‐based. Then we use justice and social exchange theories to develop a model linking employee perceptions of promotion criteria to performance via their relationships with promotional justice and organizational commitment. In a sample of 305 employee–supervisor pairs, we found that both promotional justice and organizational commitment mediated between perceptions of promotion criteria and supervisor rated in‐role and extra‐role performance, and that having received a promotion in the past predicted attributions that promotions were based relatively more on performance or nonperformance criteria. Study 2 further examined the role of promotions themselves in the formation of perceptions of promotion criteria. Drawing from image and attribution theories, we hypothesized that the relationship between having received a promotion or not and perceptions of promotion criteria depends on ego defensiveness. In a sample of 145 employees, we found that those who scored high on ego defensiveness and who had not been promoted were especially likely to attribute promotion decisions to nonperformance criteria. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Shared aggression concerns and organizational outcomes: The moderating role of resource constraints

Most research on workplace aggression focuses on the antecedents and consequences of aggression for individual workers. The current study examines how shared workplace aggression concerns relate to internal and external organizational outcomes. Drawing on the work stress, social identity, and social contagion literatures, we propose relationships between unit‐level aggression concerns and unit‐level measures of performance and employee attitudes in a public school sample (2989 employees; 163 schools). We also propose that these relationships differ depending on the resource context of the school. Consistent with our expectations, schools in which teachers had strong shared concerns about aggression also had poorer shared job attitudes and poorer student outcomes, as indicated by average standardized test scores at the school. The impact of shared concerns about aggression on school‐level standardized test scores was stronger for resource‐rich schools than for schools with fewer resources. The current study contributes to organizational research as it establishes that workplace aggression concerns have adverse consequences for the whole organization, not only for the individuals experiencing the events. Our findings demonstrate that employees' shared concerns about aggression have an impact on organizational outcomes and suggest a prevention‐focused approach to workplace aggression. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Examination of the combined effects of work values and early work experiences on organizational commitment

We tested the hypothesis that the influence of early work experiences on organization commitment would be moderated by the value employees place on these experiences. We measured work values in two samples of recent university graduates prior to organizational entry, and obtained measures of commensurate work experiences and three forms of commitment (affective, continuance, and normative: Allen and Meyer, 1990) on different occasions following entry. Regression analyses revealed that values and experiences did interact in the prediction of affective commitment and normative commitment, but that the nature of the interaction was different for different work value/experience combinations. The findings provide some challenge to the common sense assumption that positive work experiences will have the strongest effect on commitment among those who most value such experiences. Implications for research and practice are discussed. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Understanding and assessing safety culture through the lens of organizational management of uncertainty

The management of uncertainties is discussed as a key challenge for organizations and two approaches to handling uncertainties are introduced, i.e. minimizing uncertainties versus coping with uncertainties. The analysis of rules as for instance laid out in standard operating procedures is suggested as one method for identifying the approach to uncertainty management chosen in a particular organization. Given advantages and disadvantages of both approaches to uncertainty management, loose coupling is discussed as a way of balancing the two approaches and a conceptualization of safety culture as a means for loose coupling is proposed. One of the central controversies underlying discussions on designing organizations for safety, i.e. the relationship between autonomy and safety, is expanded upon in order to deepend the understanding of different design strategies within the framework of uncertainty management. Finally, it is argued that the role and importance of safety culture differs depending on the chosen approach to uncertainty management, requiring that any safety culture assessment is preceeded by an assessment of the fit between the uncertainties an organization is confronted with and the chosen forms of handling these uncertainties. Methods for carrying out these assessments are suggested.     

Managers' coping resources,perceived organizational patterns,and responses during organizational recovery from decline

This study proposes that individual coping resources and organizational patterns explain the responses of mid‐level managers to organizational recovery after decline. The study sample consisted of 252 managers in Israeli enterprises recovering from organizational decline. The responses studied were—citizenship responses, negative responses, the wish to exit and acts to exit the organization. Hypotheses were developed relating these responses to individual coping resources of job involvement, self‐esteem and locus of control, and to organizational factors of organic processes, top management support, and organizational opportunities. Findings indicated that most coping resources and organizational patterns correlated with type of response: citizenship behaviors were related to job involvement, internal locus of control, self‐esteem and to perceptions of opportunities and organic processes in the organization. They were negatively related to external locus of control. Negative behavior was negatively related to job involvement, self‐esteem, perceived organizational opportunities and organic processes. The wish to exit related negatively to job involvement, external locus of control, and perceived opportunities. It related positively to self‐esteem. Actual exit behavior was not predicted by the coping resources, nor by organizational factors. Three‐stage multiple regression analyses revealed that individual coping characteristics reduced the impacts of organizational factors for most responses. Implications for management are discussed. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Perceptions of organizational safety: implications for the development of safety culture

Regulatory bodies in the U.K. have emphasized the importance of ‘a positive health and safety culture’ to the safety performance of companies. A key feature of a company's safety culture is shared perceptions amongst managers and staff concerning the importance of safety. This study recorded the perceptions of 312 British Rail train drivers, supervisors and senior managers concerning the relative importance of 25 railway factors. Each level also gave their estimates of the ratings of the other levels. The study found that whilst there was a shared perception of the importance of safety, intergroup perceptions were not realistic. It is argued that accurate intergroup perceptions are essential to the development of mutual trust and understanding between levels, which forms the basis for a positive safety culture. Suggestions for establishing the foundations for a positive safety culture are discussed. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Organizational politics and organizational support as predictors of work attitudes,job performance,and organizational citizenship behavior

This study investigated the relationship of organizational politics and organizational support to various work attitudes and behaviors among a field sample of 128 participants. Consistent with our hypothesis, politics and support were related to job satisfaction, commitment, turnover intentions, and supervisor ratings of organizational citizenship behaviors. However, only support was related to job performance. We also examined whether or not organizational politics and organizational support comprise two distinct constructs or one global factor. The evidence here was ambiguous. Fit indices obtained from confirmatory factor analysis suggested that it is more parsimonious to treat politics and support as opposite ends of the same construct, though the two‐factor model did show a slightly better fit. On the other hand, subsequent multiple regression analyses showed that support tended to account for additional criterion variance beyond the effect of politics, implying that there may be some practical utility to retaining politics and support as distinct constructs. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Relationship between organizational justice and employee work outcomes: a cross‐national study

This study examined the influence of organizational justice perceptions on employee work outcome relationships as moderated by individual differences that are influenced by societal culture. Power distance, but not country or individualism, moderated the relationships between perceived justice and satisfaction, performance, and absenteeism. The effects of perceived justice on these outcomes were stronger among individuals scoring lower on power distance index, and most of these study participants were in the U.S. (versus Hong Kong) sample. Limitations of the study and the implications of the findings for managing cross‐culturally are discussed. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Discriminating among organizational politics,justice, and support

The discriminant validity of perceptions of organizational politics, organizational support, and procedural and distributive justice was examined as the distinctions between these variables have been blurred in past research. Results from a sample of 418 full‐time employees provided evidence of discriminant validity for these variables. First, structural equation modelling was used to isolate the best structural representation of these four variables. Then, six theoretically relevant predictors (i.e., leader–member exchange, centralization, formalization, co‐worker cooperation, role conflict, and locus of control) were examined in an effort to provide further conceptual separation. Five of the six antecedents distinguished among politics, justice, and support. Suggestions for additional research that can shed light on the distinctions and similarities of these variables are offered based on the results of this study. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Beyond demographic identities and motivation to learn: The effect of organizational identification on diversity training outcomes

There is a pressing need for better explanations of diversity training effectiveness so that organizations can administer training programs that facilitate positive intergroup interactions. In this paper, we consider the unique predictive effect of organizational identification on diversity training outcomes beyond the effects of the traditional predictors of demographic-based identities and motivation to learn across two samples of employees involved in diversity-related training at their employing organizations. Organizational identification predicted unique variance in voluntary participation in diversity training, diversity training-related knowledge application, motivation to transfer diversity training, and diversity training-related organizational citizenship behavior intentions. Research and practitioner implications are discussed based on our findings.     

Parent cultural control through organizational acculturation: HCN employees learning new work values in foreign business subsidiaries

Local employees in foreign business subsidiaries could learn new work values from the parent organizational culture through a process of organizational acculturation. As this is a new concept in academic research, it is important to explore organizational acculturation and its ramifications, especially since it may be used as a strategy of cultural control applied by the parent organization. Following a discussion of the theoretical foundation of this concept, the consequences of organizational acculturation are exemplified by an investigation of middle managers in Singapore. The study was undertaken in two stages. The first stage included a comparison of work values of Singaporean managers, employed by Swedish companies in Singapore, and those of a control group of Singaporean managers, not employed by Swedish companies. In the second stage, work values of managers in Singapore and Sweden were compared. Our results imply that some Swedish work values had been adopted, suggesting that the local managers had experienced organizational acculturation. Practical implications and possible further research are discussed.